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BUSINESS
Jun 15, 2001

Nomura to set up 401(k)-style pension

Nomura Securities Co. will withdraw from the securities industry's employee pension fund and use the money it saves to set up a 401(k)-style pension plan, company officials said Thursday.
MORE SPORTS
Jun 15, 2001

Venus, Capriati to play in Tokyo

Staff writer This year's Toyota Princess Cup tennis tournament will feature stars of the past and present, organizers announced Thursday in Tokyo. American Venus Williams is expected to make her debut in Japan, along with sister Serena who is the defending champion.
BUSINESS
Jun 15, 2001

Downward pressures on euro buoy yen

The euro remains under pressure, reflecting a shift in sentiment about the outlook for the euro-zone economy.
JAPAN
Jun 15, 2001

Hibakusha ruling to be appealed

The government will appeal a court ruling ordering the state to pay medical allowances to a Korean atomic bomb survivor who lives outside Japan, according to government sources.
BUSINESS
Jun 15, 2001

Corporate bankruptcies continue to rise

The number of corporate bankruptcies rose 12.8 percent in May from a year earlier to 1,724, increasing for the second consecutive month, a private research institute said Thursday.
BUSINESS
Jun 15, 2001

Keidanren backs Koizumi's reform initiatives

The Japan Federation of Economic Organizations (Keidanren) pledged its "full support" Thursday for Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi's structural reform initiatives, even if such steps bring a negative impact on the economy.
JAPAN
Jun 15, 2001

Nation scrambles to catch up in online education

In a belated attempt to get up to speed in the field of e-learning, Japan's educational institutes and companies are scrambling to offer online education programs and cash in on the burgeoning field.
ENVIRONMENT / ANIMAL TRACKER
Jun 15, 2001

Hummingbird hawkmoth

* Japanese name: Oosukashiba * Scientific name: Cephonodes hylas * Description: These moths are sometimes mistaken for hummingbirds, because they fly just like them. But they are in fact insects -- day-flying moths. The thorax and abdomen of this species are bright green, with red, black and yellow...
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 15, 2001

Korean summit fails to meet expectations

SEOUL -- Under normal circumstances, the meaning of a great event should become clearer in retrospect than in prospect. Yet on the first anniversary of last year's Korean summit, confusion rather than clarity reigns. In a sense, a year is too short a time to know if real change has occurred, setting...
BUSINESS
Jun 15, 2001

Foreign banks' edge to slip: expert

The lead held by foreign banks over their Japanese counterparts in areas such as derivatives trading will probably erode in five to 10 years, Brian Metcalfe, a professor at Brock University Business School, said Thursday.
BUSINESS
Jun 15, 2001

BOJ opposes easing monetary policy

Bank of Japan Gov. Masaru Hayami on Thursday brushed off political calls for the central bank to relax its monetary policy further in the face of an ailing economy.
JAPAN
Jun 15, 2001

Party members to visit Seoul, China

The secretaries general of the three ruling coalition parties will begin a four-day trip to China and South Korea on July 8, party members said Thursday.
COMMENTARY / THE VIEW FROM MOSCOW
Jun 15, 2001

Bush and Putin square off

On Saturday, U.S. President George W. Bush is meeting his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, in Ljubljana, Slovenia in what will be the first Russo-American summit of the 21st century. The issue that will dominate the talks is clear: Bush's grandiose plan for national missile defense. Like chess champs...
EDITORIALS
Jun 14, 2001

Long-term gain worth the pain

Japan's gross domestic product in the first quarter of the year dropped 0.2 percent from the previous quarter, or 0.8 percent at the annualized rate, according to figures released Monday by the Cabinet Office. Economic indicators since April also show the economy is decelerating. Mr. Heizo Takenaka,...
JAPAN
Jun 14, 2001

Cambodia to get $560 million

Donor nations concluded a two-day conference on aid to Cambodia in Tokyo on Wednesday with combined pledges of $560 million, conference officials said.
JAPAN
Jun 14, 2001

Drunk driver jailed for fatal crash

The Utsunomiya District Court sentenced a truck driver to 31/2 years in prison Wednesday for killing a 19-year-old caregiver when he crashed into her car while driving under the influence of alcohol last July.
JAPAN
Jun 14, 2001

Cuba envoy fund misuse to be probed

Foreign Minister Makiko Tanaka indicated Wednesday she will thoroughly investigate reports that a former ambassador to Cuba diverted taxpayer money for private purposes.
JAPAN
Jun 14, 2001

Launch date for spy satellites delayed until July 2003

The government decided Wednesday to postpone the launch of two of four domestically developed reconnaissance satellites by five months until July 2003, due to delays in parts procurement.
BUSINESS
Jun 14, 2001

Yamasaki to ask BOJ for even easier money

Taku Yamasaki, secretary general of the ruling Liberal Democratic Party, said Wednesday he will ask Bank of Japan Gov. Masaru Hayami to ease monetary policy further to prevent the economy from decelerating.
BUSINESS
Jun 14, 2001

Margin buying keeps rising

The balance of shares bought on credit rose for the fifth straight week last week, although the pace of increase slowed visibly.
BUSINESS
Jun 14, 2001

Amazon Japan adds video tapes, CDs, DVDs

The Japanese unit of Amazon.com announced Wednesday its expansion to sell compact discs, digital versatile discs and video tapes, but said there was no sign of the company making a profit yet.
JAPAN
Jun 14, 2001

Stabbing suspect aimed to harass relatives

OSAKA — The suspect in last Friday's massacre at an elementary school in Ikeda, Osaka Prefecture, has told investigators that he wanted to "stir up a commotion" to harass his relatives, it was learned Wednesday.
JAPAN
Jun 14, 2001

Pesky monkeys face death squads

Monkeys caused at least 850 million yen worth of damage to Japan's agricultural produce during fiscal 1999, an animal protection body said in a survey released Wednesday.
BUSINESS
Jun 14, 2001

'Double bottom' could presage recovery

While Tokyo share prices have remained at a depressed level in recent weeks, the stock market could bottom out for the second time in a span of three months or so, a situation that is often followed by a strong rebound.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 14, 2001

Pressure mounts for reform in Iran

TEHRAN -- Iranian President Mohammad Khatami's landslide victory in last week's presidential election is seen as a great boost for him and his reformist followers in the power struggle that pits them against Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and the hardline clerical establishment.
JAPAN
Jun 14, 2001

Obituary: Yoshishige Saito

Yoshishige Saito, an internationally renowned artist and pioneer of the avant-garde movement in Japan, died Wednesday at a Yokohama hospital, his family said. He was 97.
JAPAN
Jun 14, 2001

Upper House passes stiffer driving rules

The House of Councilors on Wednesday approved amendments to the Road Traffic Law that include heavier penalties and an extension of the validity of driver's licenses to five years from the current three.
COMMENTARY / World
Jun 14, 2001

Pyongyang's Chinese connection to the global economy

DANDONG, China -- When managers at a North Korean metal works began dreaming that foreigners' suits and blouses might one day be draped on the company's aluminum coat-hangers, there was no way to pursue international markets directly.

Longform

Ichiro Suzuki, one of the most iconic players in NPB and MLB history, was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame with 99.7% of the vote.
With Hall of Fame induction, Ichiro makes himself heard loud and clear